Child and Adolescent Autism & ADHD Assessment and Therapies Service

Autism is understood as a condition that exists on a spectrum, so autistic children and adolescents can experience very different symptoms from each other. Autism is a developmental condition affecting social interactions and communication; approximately 1 in 100 children have a formal diagnosis of autism, but the real prevalence is likely much higher.

Autism is something you are born with, with signs of autism often visible in childhood. Symptoms can present differently in girls and boys (for instance, girls are thought to be ‘better’ able to mask in social situations). The rise in hormones during puberty can escalate challenges, particularly sensory issues and symptoms of anxiety, which can cause teenagers to ‘act out’, withdraw or become disruptive.

Some common symptoms of Autism include:

• Difficulties with social interaction and communication
• Repetitive patterns of behaviour and fixation on certain activities
• Repetitive movements or ‘tics’ such as finger flicking, vocal tics or other movements
• Finding change very difficult to manage
• Difficulty maintaining eye contact with others
• Not being interested in imaginative play / playing with others
• Sensory avoidances or attractions (e.g. labels and sounds)
• Delayed language skills

There is no ‘cure’ for autism, but for many families a diagnosis can be a huge relief. Not only does a diagnosis provide an explanation for why a child struggles with things others may not, but a diagnosis of autism can help ensure that effective support and resources are put in place to allow autistic children to thrive and live a more comfortable life.

Common Signs of ADHD include:

The first step is a free consultation call with our Clinical Director to ensure that an ADHD or ASD assessment is the best option for your child or teenager.

Step 1 – Initial Assessment with both parent(s) and child – (60 minutes) £325

The first stage of the assessment, for both Autism and ADHD, is to have an initial assessment with a clinician who specialises in neurodevelopmental conditions.

Aims of the Initial Assessment

• A comprehensive and standalone assessment as to whether an autism, ADHD or combined diagnostic assessment is the most appropriate for you. The initial assessment cannot tell you if your child meets the diagnostic criteria but our clinicians will be able to offer you expert advice.
• A chance to explore further assessment processes, without having to financially or emotionally commit to the whole assessment process.
• Information gathered will be used if you decide to continue with further Autism or ADHD assessments.

Before the Initial Assessment Appointment

Before the initial assessment, you will be sent some clinical questionnaires which provide information needed to understand whether a Autism or ADHD assessment is appropriate.

During the Initial Assessment Appointment

You and your child will then meet with a specialist clinician who is hugely experienced at assessing neurodevelopmental conditions. The clinician will take a clinical history and discuss the difficulties your child is experiencing, as well as observing and talking to your child.

At the end of the initial assessment, the clinician, where possible, will give feedback as to what they think are the next best steps. They may need to collect further information or talk to other clinicians before they can give you full feedback.

After the Initial Assessment Appointment

You will receive a feedback call from the assessing clinician, and a full written detailing the difficulties experienced, their impact, a developmental history and history of the difficulties will be sent to you, along with recommendations for next steps. At this stage you can decide if you wish to go ahead with further assessments.

Autism Assessment for Children and Young People (6+) – £1,800

1. 1. Full Developmental History (3Di): 60-90 minutes – parents / carers meet with a clinician for a full developmental history, covering birth to current day. The clinician will want to understand any difficulties or differences your child experiences, and any concerns the parent has.
   2. Interactive structured clinical assessment: (ADOS) 60-90 minutes – your child meets with a specialist clinician to carry out the ADOS, a clinical assessment that involves your child interacting with a series of objects (many young children will think of this as play) in a way that allows the clinician to closely observe their interactions and behaviour. Parents might be concerned that their child or teen will be anxious or worried about this, but our clinicians are hugely experienced at helping young people to interact and get the most out of their appointment.
      
   3. School observations and feedback: Your child’s school will be asked to complete clinical questionnaires about how your child interacts in their education setting. We may need to ask for further feedback or carry out a school observation to ensure that our diagnosis is accurate. This is all included within the cost of the package and will be discussed with you if needed.

Autism Assessment Diagnostic Process

A multi-disciplinary team review – in line with best practice, we use an ‘MDT’ approach to each diagnosis. This means the results from each competent of the assessment will be discussed by two or more clinicians that you will have met, as well as our specialist Clinical Psychologist. This ensures that every aspect is carefully examined, and all areas considered, allowing you to have confidence in the outcomes drawn.

Feedback and comprehensive report

You will be offered a 60 minute feedback appointment, where the findings of the assessments will be shared with you, along with a diagnostic outcome. There will be plenty of time to talk through any questions you have and discuss what support and resources might be helpful for your child in the future.

You will receive a comprehensive report detailing the assessment, findings, diagnostic outcome if appropriate and basis of findings. This can be shared with the NHS or your child’s place of education should you wish.

Post Assessment Support

Haven Medical are proud to have a range of experienced, specialist clinicians who can offer post-diagnostic support and therapies that can be hugely helpful, regardless of the diagnostic outcome.

We can offer the following:

• Speech and language therapy
• Occupational therapy (useful for sensory difficulties)
• CBT and other therapeutic interventions for autistic individuals / those with ‘traits’
• Parenting support and guidance
• Child and Adolescent psychiatry and prescribing
• ADHD Assessments
• Onward referrals to specialised services if needed

We guarantee our assessments: if the local authority or NHS initially rejects the outcome of the diagnostic assessment, and their decision remains unchanged after you challenge it through a formal review, we will refund the cost of the assessment. This refund is only offered after the review process confirms the decision.

ADHD Assessment for Children and Young People – £1,150

Following on from the Initial Assessment, if you have been recommended to continue with an ADHD assessment, you can expect several face to face appointments with our clinical team.

ADHD Assessment Process

1. Clinical Interview: You and your child will meet with an expert ADHD clinician, where you will be asked a broad range of questions to understand the symptoms your child has and the impact of these on their life.
2. Qb check: This is an objective and evidence based measure of ADHD symptoms and is carried out on a computer. Your child will complete a short set of tasks, at a computer, where a camera will track their movements and responses. Widely used by the NHS and NICE approved, the Qb check provides an excellent range of data which the assessment team can use to inform their decisions. 
3. Clinical Questionnaires: ADHD specific psychometric questionnaires, including the Conner’s will be completed by parents, your child’s school, and depending on the age of your child, themselves.
4. School observations and feedback: We may need to ask for further feedback or carry out a school observation to ensure that our diagnosis is accurate. This is all included within the cost of the package and will be discussed with you if needed.

ADHD Assessment Diagnostic Process

A multi-disciplinary team review – in line with best practice, we use an ‘MDT’ approach to each diagnosis. This means the results from each competent of the assessment will be discussed by two or more clinicians, as well as our specialist ADHD lead clinician. This ensures that every aspect is carefully examined, and all areas considered, allowing you to have confidence in the outcomes drawn.

Feedback and comprehensive report

You will be offered a feedback appointment, where the findings of the assessments will be shared with you, along with a diagnostic outcome. There will be plenty of time to talk through any questions you have and discuss what support and resources might be helpful for your child in the future.

You will receive a comprehensive report detailing the assessment, findings, diagnostic outcome if appropriate and basis of findings. This can be shared with the NHS or your child’s place of education should you wish.

Post Assessment Support

Haven Medical are proud to have a range of experienced, specialist clinicians who can offer post-diagnostic support and therapies that can be hugely helpful, regardless of the diagnostic outcome.

We can offer the following:

• ADHD medication titration and prescribing
• Speech and language therapy
• Occupational therapy (useful for sensory difficulties)
• CBT and other therapeutic interventions
• Parenting support and guidance
• Child and Adolescent psychiatry and prescribing
• Autism Assessments
• Onward referrals to specialised services if needed

We guarantee our assessments: if the local authority or NHS initially rejects the outcome of the diagnostic assessment, and their decision remains unchanged after you challenge it through a formal review, we will refund the cost of the assessment. This refund is only offered after the review process confirms the decision.

Autism and ADHD Combined Assessment for Children and Young People – £2,575

Following on from the Initial Assessment, if you have been recommended to continue with an Autism and ADHD combined assessment, you can expect several face to face appointments with our clinical team.

Assessment Process

We offer a combined assessment pathway for those who are thought to have both ADHD and Autism. The signs of Autism and ADHD often overlap and are similar to symptoms resulting from other conditions such as OCD, anxiety and developmental delays. Around 20-25% of children and young people will have both ADHD and Autism, which can create internal struggles as the competing traits can create tensions that need to be managed.

Some aspects of the assessments overlap so will only be completed once, which means a streamlined assessment without duplication and the unnecessary burden of assessment for you and your child. Clinical questionnaires, assessment appointments and tools such as the ADOS and Qb check will be used to draw diagnostic outcomes.

Feedback and comprehensive report

You will be offered a 60 minute feedback appointment, where the findings of the assessments will be shared with you, along with diagnostic outcomes. There will be plenty of time to talk through any questions you have and discuss what support and resources might be helpful for your child in the future.

You will receive a comprehensive report detailing the assessment, findings, diagnosis if appropriate and basis of findings. This can be shared with the NHS or your child’s place of education should you wish.

Post Assessment Support

Haven Medical are proud to have a range of experienced, specialist clinicians who can offer post-diagnostic support and therapies that can be hugely helpful, regardless of the diagnostic outcome.

We can offer the following:

• ADHD medication titration and prescribing
• Speech and language therapy
• Occupational therapy (useful for sensory difficulties)
• CBT and other therapeutic interventions
• Parenting support and guidance
• Child and Adolescent psychiatry and prescribing

We guarantee our assessments: if the local authority or NHS initially rejects the outcome of the diagnostic assessment, and their decision remains unchanged after you challenge it through a formal review, we will refund the cost of the assessment. This refund is only offered after the review process confirms the decision.

ADHD medication prescribing and titration package – £1,225

If your child receives an ADHD diagnosis, you may want to consider medication as a way of helping them with their symptoms. Haven Medical have clinicians who are specialists in ADHD medication, who will be able to advise and support you in your decision making.

Our ADHD prescribing and titration package consists of:

1. An initial 90 minute appointment for parents and children, to determine the correct medication to start, any health concerns, to take vital health information and talk about how to take the medication.
2. 4 further titration appointments (spaced fortnightly and then monthly). It can take a while to find the most effective dose of medication, which is why we offer 4 further appointments over 10 weeks.
3. A further Qb check to objectively evaluate the impact of the medication.
4. The cost of the prescriptions themselves (around £40) are included in the titration package, but as with all private prescriptions, you will need to pay for the medications themselves. We can advise on likely costs of this.

When ADHD medications are prescribed, they need to be adjusted to the right dose over a period of time, this is called titration.

Important Information regarding ADHD Medication:

Shared Care
Shared Care agreements, with your local GP or NHS provider, may be available, which allows you to access prescriptions on the NHS. We cannot guarantee that your local NHS services will be willing to do this, and always advise that you discuss this option with your GP before commencing treatment.

Privately Funded Medication
If you choose to pay privately for your prescriptions, you will need to pay the repeat prescription fee (£40), plus the cost of the medication itself. Those taking ADHD medications need to have periodic reviews, which will incur a further charge. Please don’t hesitate to contact our Clinical Director to discuss this.

Seeking prescriptions from Haven, following an assessment elsewhere
If you have received an ADHD diagnosis elsewhere, you can come to Haven to receive prescriptions, but we may need to carry out further tests depending on where and when you had your original assessment carried out. Please call our Clinical Director to discuss.

Regardless of whether your child meets the diagnostic criteria for Autism or ADHD, they may well be struggling with challenges or things that make life more difficult for them than need be. We have a wide range of clinicians and therapists who are able to offer support that really can make a huge difference to your child’s ability to thrive and live a more comfortable life.

We can offer the following:

• ADHD medication titration and prescribing
• Speech and language therapy
• Occupational therapy (useful for sensory difficulties)
• CBT and other therapeutic interventions
• Parenting support and guidance
• Child and Adolescent psychiatry and prescribing

Haven Medical are able to offer appointments for children, adolescents and their parents with our specialist post-diagnostic support service – suitable for all, regardless of the outcome of their diagnosis.  Sessions can help build confidence and self-esteem, learn key skills needed in social and educational settings and develop emotional regulation skills.